


A Secret The Forest Keeps

by Gay_Natasha_Saves_The_World



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Cottagecore, Fae & Fairies, Faerie AU, Fauns, Flower Crowns, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Royalty, Slow Burn, foraging, village, woods
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:34:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27339511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gay_Natasha_Saves_The_World/pseuds/Gay_Natasha_Saves_The_World
Summary: If anyone knew they would disapprove. A faun from an anti monarch family and a betrothed prince from the flower kingdom. The forest must keep secrets from themselves and from others. (A faerie au)
Relationships: Percy Weasley/Oliver Wood
Comments: 27
Kudos: 34





	1. Chance encounters

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! This is my first foyer into long-form fanfiction and I'm excited to see where it goes! Please do like and comment if you enjoy and follow ezmiho on Soundcloud for some epic tunes.

Percival Weasley was a perfectly happy child by all accounts of the word. A faun of nearly 11 living on his family's small farm without a care in the world. He knew not of love beyond his mother and father and he knew not of prejudice. He was an innocent young lad and playful too. Not to the point to cause trouble his wee brothers Fredrick and George caused that enough. 

At such a young age his mother already trusted him to forage alone. He held this task with pride. His older brothers William and Charles hadn’t been allowed to forage in the forest alone until they were much older than he was. There was great fun to be had foraging. Searching every nook and cranny in the forest brought young Percival great joy. When his mother had asked him to go today he got ready at once.

He put on his new linen shirt. It was still quite big but he was growing so he knew it would fit someday. His brothers always wore a belt with their shirts to make it more flattering but he didn’t see the need. It looked perfectly fine as is. He had put on his leather satchel. It was useful for carrying things like apples he picked or the lunch his mother made for him. The rest could easily go into a basket. Unlike other fae, fauns had no need for pants or shoes so they didn’t bother spending money on them. Percival then put his mustard yellow cloak on and he was ready to go on his merry way.

He walked down the stairs into the kitchen where his mother had prepared a lunch to take with him. Along with a basket and the list of things they needed. He had shoved the lunch into his bag along with the list. His mother had kissed him on the cheek and he headed out.

He stepped out of their cottage and onto the stepping stone path that led to the road. He had bid adieu to his father and older brothers who were working on their farmland. With that, he headed to the forest.

Percival had always found the forest quite peaceful. His wee brother Ronald was always scared of it since he was a baby but Percival found tranquillity in the forest. Her many trees surrounding him made him feel connected to something bigger than himself. The birds flying around, the sun shining through the leaves of various varieties of trees, The ferns and wildflowers forming a path for him. If he had it his way he would live in the forest. But there was no time for dilly-dallying he had things to get.

He opened his satchel and took out the list to see where he needed to go. On the piece of paper, his mom had written:  
Ten green apples  
A bundle of wild thyme  
A basket full of hazelnuts  
Some cornflowers for your sister she wishes to learn how to press them  
Percival put it back into his satchel and then went on the hunt.

He had gathered the green apples and wild thyme for his mother before and knew easily where to find cornflowers but he was at a loss when it came to hazelnuts. He thought he might as well get the things he knew before worrying about it. He headed off to the green apple tree just right off the trail.

Climbing wasn’t a fauns forte. Their deer-like legs were made for running and jumping but not climbing. Still, Percival knew that to get the best apples you had to reach the top of the tree so forte or not he wasn’t gonna settle. His brother Charles had taught him how to use a rope to climb it so that’s what he used. He had become quite skilled in the mode of collecting. Soon enough he had all ten apples his mother had asked him to get.

Next was the thyme. He knew there was a patch not far from here. He had found his way back to the trail. When he was walking he noticed the wind picking up speed. 

‘Great,’ he thought. ‘Wind spirits were just what I needed.’ out of all the things he loved about the woods he hated wind spirits. They were all a bunch of gits who would stop at nothing for a chance to mess with a lowly faun like him. He remembered the first time he went foraging. They had built up enough force to throw him into a giant oak tree. He eventually got down at the price of a broken arm but ever since then he wanted nothing to do with the lot of them

He let out a frustrated huff and put his hood up. That way they couldn’t mess with his hair more than it already was. Anyway, he had to find the thyme. In a few minutes, he had found a wild patch. He had knelt down to pick it. He didn’t very much enjoy the laborious work it was but it was better than harvesting the barely or milking the cows so he didn’t complain. Once he picked it he tied it with the string he had in his satchel. Then as he was getting up he was knocked backward by a strong gust of wind, followed by whispers of laughter. 

As joyful was young Percival perceived himself to be, he could get quite flustered and fussy at times. And he was definitely susceptible to these emotions when it came to those dastardly wind spirits. It was like they took pleasure in ruining other’s days. But again, there was no time to cry about it. He still needed the hazelnuts and the cornflowers.

Percival had found a nice clearing and decided it would be a good place for lunch. He had taken off his cloak and his satchel. He grabbed his lunch his mum had packed for him. It was a piece of bread, a slice of cheese, some blueberries, and a bottle of ale. Almost everything was made on their own farm. He didn’t mind of course they didn’t have the type of money for other cheeses or ales and why would they waste it? Percival gladly ate his lunch.

He was just about done when once again a sudden gust of wind swept by him. It took the remaining blueberries and scattered them but it also blew his satchel, his basket, and his cloak into the creek behind him. Luckily the satchel wasn’t opened so none of the contents he spent the morning getting were lost but still now his cloak was wet. What good shall a wet cloak do for him? 

He rushed to the creek at once to retrieve his things. As he was turning to get to it he saw a young boy already picking up his things from out of the water. He couldn’t have been much older than Percival himself was. He was wearing a shirt similar to the one Percival was wearing but his were tucked into a pair of light green breeches. He had worn a lavender purple mantle and a pair of shoes that were fashioned to look like leaves.

If there was anything Percival hated it was people helping him when he didn’t ask. It made him feel weak and helpless, two things he was not. He huffed over to the creek to get the rest of his stuff out. He didn’t want this strange boy meddling with his things. He had already grabbed the cloak but wasn’t quick enough to get the satchel and basket before Percival snatched it quite aggressively.

The boy was taken aback. He was only trying to help the young faun but he was clearly having none of it. He had a quite confused look on his face. No one had ever acted like this to him when he tried to help them before. Maybe it had something to do with the area. His friends had told him that people near the faun village always got quite mad at their tricks and were fun to mess with but he didn’t like making people angry and it was clear the boy in front of him was.

Percival wanted so badly to just go about his day and finish his foraging but the boy was still holding onto his cloak. He considered just leaving without it but he knew his parents would be mad at him. Wool wasn’t cheap after all. But the boy was just holding it, doing nothing else, saying nothing else. Just holding it as if he was teasing Percival, which only made him madder. He tried to take it out of his arms but the boy quickly pulled it away.

Percival glared at him in a way he never had glared at anybody. The boy was clearly messing with him once again. The boy had clothes and by the look of it he wasn’t poor either so what was the point if he didn’t need it? He had been pushed around by wind spirits but never had they tried to take something from him.

“Give me my cloak back.” Percival crossed his arms. He was trying to sound intimidating but his 11-year-old voice wasn’t on his side. “But why? It is still wet.” The boy replied back. “I don’t care. it’s mine, give it back.” “But you must let me dry it first. What use does a wet cloak have?” Percival was turning a visible shade redder. 

“I did not ask you to dry it. I do not have the time to wait for it to dry.” He said, trying to grab his cloak again. “What is your issue? I only wanted to help.” “I DID NOT ASK FOR HELP,” Percival screamed. He had never screamed at anybody before but this boy filled with a rage unmatched by anything he had ever experienced. All he wished was to go about his day again

The other boy looked like he was about to cry. Never had anybody been this mad at him. 

“Please if you just let me dry it I’ll leave you alone.” The boy pleaded. “Fine.” Percival huffed. At once the boy manipulated the wind to quickly dry the mustard yellow cloak. After the water fully left it, the boy presented it to Percival, who snatched it away and put it back on.

He started to walk away without another word but the boy continued to follow him. Frustrated and flustered, he turned around to once again confront him.

“I thought you said you were going to leave me alone,” Percival said quite bitterly. “If you don’t mind me asking, what are you doing alone in the woods?” “It’s none of your business and besides it appears that you are alone in the woods too.” Percival started walking away again.

“Are you always this rude to people?” Percival scoffed and asked, “What is that supposed to mean?” “You have been nothing but dismissive when all I have tried to do was be helpful.” Both of the boys stopped. 

“I did not ask for help. I do not need help. Especially not from a wind spirit.” “I don’t know where you come from but I’ve been taught it’s polite to offer help to people who don’t ask for it.” The boy crossed his arms at him. “Well, I don’t appreciate it. I am perfectly capable of handling things myself which is why my mum lets me forage alone.” The other boys' eyes lit up when Percival mentioned foraging.

“Oooh I have never been foraging before but I have always wished to learn how to. Do show me how.” He pleaded with Percival. “Why would I do that? So you will know all the places and take everything from them?” His family has taken years to find the best foraging spots and he wasn’t about to give them away to this random boy. 

“But please I wouldn't, I just want to learn how.” “I have said no plenty of times. Does that not mean anything where you’re from.” Percival said as he continued to walk away out of the clearing, leaving the boy quite dumbfounded.

The experience left Percival with quite a lot of dread. Whoever this boy was, he wasn’t someone Percival would enjoy spending time with. He had taken up so much time with his pushy nature and friendly disposition that it was rearing close to the afternoon and Percival still hasn’t foraged the hazelnuts or the cornflowers. He remembered where his brothers had shown him the hazel tree. It was in the clearing.

He had no doubt in his mind that the boy would still be there. But he had to get the hazelnuts. He had to swallow his pride and risk the chance to once again meet the boy. Once he entered the clearing once again, he saw the boy sitting on a stump looking quite sad. But Percival had no time for it. He would take ages to harvest enough nuts to fill his basket; it was no time for distraction. 

Of course, the boy noticed his return but he didn’t want to anger him more than he already had. So he just watched him. Watch him climb up the hazel tree with his rope and carefully pick the hazelnuts one by one being careful not to slip. He thought to himself how much easier it would’ve been if he had helped but he had learned how the young faun thought about help. So it was better to leave it alone.

It had taken Percival quite some time to pick the hazelnuts. When he got done he noticed the sun was setting. It wasn’t a good thing at all. His parents had warned him to stay out of the woods at night. He never knew why but it was better not to test it. 

As he descended he noticed the boy was still there. There must be some reason he was still there. It seemed ridiculous for it to be because of him. So he decided to show civility and ask him if anything was wrong.

“You don’t want to be in the woods at night. Are you waiting for something?” The boy looked up at him. “My friends have seemed to forget about me and I haven’t the slightest clue how to get out.” Percival had felt a little bad about the way he behaved before. He knew his reaction was uncalled for so he thought he should make it up to the boy. 

“Well, you could walk home with me. I know the way out of the woods and after that, you can just follow the road into town.” Percival said and offered his hand to help him up. “Very well then. You shall show me the way out of the woods.” The boy said with a smile. And so the two went on. Out of the clearing and onto the path.

Most of the walk was spent in silence. Percival picked cornflowers along the way. The boy was quite confused about this. “Why are you picking those? Don’t you know that they are weeds?” Percival looked up at him with equal confusion. “They’re just cornflowers. My family loves them.” The boy laughed at this. “Why don’t you get proper flowers like lavender or roses?” “We do not have money for such frivolous things. And besides just because a flower grows wild doesn’t make it less of a flower.” Percival said quite defensively. The boy shut up after that. He couldn’t understand why this faun was so sensitive to everything.

Soon enough they found themselves out of the woods and back onto the village road. Percival turned to the boy. “If you follow this road you should find yourself in the village. I need to go home now but it was nice meeting you.” He explained quite cordially. The boy thanked him and went on his way. 

‘What a strange boy,’ He had thought to himself. As they walked separate ways the boy had heard someone calling a name.

“Percy! Percy!” he heard a voice call as an older faun appeared on the road and ran up to the younger one. “What took you so long? Mum’s been worried sick.” “I got caught up with wind spirits but I handled it well and good, Charlie.” They continued to talk but by that time the boy was too far away to hear anything. As he walked towards the village he said to himself, “hmm, so his name is Percy.”


	2. A Crown of Real Flowers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It had been a month since Percival met the strange boy in the woods. He didn't think he would meet him again. Especially not on the last day of summer. But what he found most surprising is the gift this boy brought him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was planning to post this every week but HAHAHAHAHAHA. Anyways I would like to thank Baileys Irish Cream and Franz bakery for coming up with the most delicious donut in existence. The only reason this fanfic got done is that it was so good I was inspired to write. Anyways follow Ezmiho on Soundcloud and enjoy my fic please and thank you.

It had been nearly a month since Percival had met that boy in the woods. Every so often he would cross his mind. When he went back into the clearing in the woods, when he was in the village and spotted a bit of light green fabric, and sometimes even randomly. 

He had decided that day that he shall hate the boy but now he was asking himself if he really did. Perhaps the boy just had odd mannerisms. Like Mr. Ficklesworth, the bard from the village near their house. He had some strange customs that seemed to come from nowhere. If he weren’t a faun like Percival he would assume it was cultural differences.

But enough about Mr. FIcklesworth! This isn’t his story. Percival was still going foraging alone every week for his mother. He had made sure he never got distracted as he had before. The last thing he wanted was for his family to think he couldn’t do the simple task of foraging. He always went on a Thursday. He liked the routine of it. Every other day of the week he could be helping his brothers in the field, going into the village, watching his younger siblings but he knew exactly what he was to do on Thursdays.

He’d grab the same things he always did and started his journey in the same forest. He enjoyed the sameness of all of it. It made him feel safe. And today was such a beautiful day out. Charles had told him it would be the last day like this until spring came again so he was going to enjoy every second of it. 

The forest was calmer than normal but it didn’t feel unusual. It felt serene and peaceful like all the animals and plants knew it was the last days of summer. Percival wanted nothing more to explore it but he knew he had to stick to the trails and the foraging spots. He didn’t want anyone worrying about him. But this time his mother only wanted him to get berries. Perhaps he would have time to explore just a bit.

Once again, he found himself in the clearing. He knew that blackberries grew wild just on the edge of the clearing. Should be easy enough to get. He took off his cloak and his satchel and went to work picking. 

He didn’t particularly enjoy picking blackberries. They were a pain to get for you had to reach into the bush to pick the best ones. That meant getting pricked by the thorns about one hundred times. His hands were already scarred from how much he had done it over the years. But he didn’t whine. I was just a blackberry thorn there are much worse things to be annoyed by. 

He had filled up about half of his bucket before he heard a distinct rustling in the trees. He huffed at this. For once he had hoped the wind spirits would leave the forest alone. But here they were causing problems and disturbing the calmness of the day. Percival thought he had ought to be used to them by now, but they filled him with so much rage a simple rustling of leaves could ruin his day.

But he couldn’t let them know they got to him so he continued to pick berries until the basket was full. Surprisingly, there hadn’t been another disturbance in the forest. He smiled peacefully. He looked at the sun and saw it was only about 10 in the afternoon. This was absolutely perfect. Almost too perfect. 

He went down to the stream where he met the boy a month ago and sat down. He placed the basket against a tree, making sure the wind couldn’t knock it down. He let the water run across his feet and finally relaxed. But to his dismay, it was soon to be interrupted. 

A few minutes after he had started relaxing by the creek, he felt a strange weight on his head. He opened one eye to see an ivy leaf hanging over it. He reached to grab whatever was put on his head. He had assumed it was just something from a tree that blew over onto his head put to his surprise it was a flower crown.

Now he was even more confused. He picked it up from his head to look at it. The flowers alternated between green carnations, green gerbera daisies, purple dahlias, and purple foxglove which were woven onto a bed of ivy. He had seen flower crowns before. The girls in the village had them often to give to boys they liked but they always used wildflowers from the forest. They didn’t look anything like this one. 

Whilst he was pondering where this crown could’ve come from, he felt a sudden presence next to him. He cautiously turned his head to see the boy from the month before sitting next to him. Percival was frightened of course. He let out a yelp and tried to get away from him. This attempt only naturally resulted in him falling straight into the creek.

The boy was of course embarrassed by this. He didn’t mean to scare him. He rushed over to help him at once. Percival grabbed the boy's hand and lifted himself out of the creek.

“You should be more careful when greeting people.” Percival took off his now drenched cloak and set it on a log. “I am incredibly sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” “It’s alright but please don’t make a habit out of scaring people.” He sat down in his previous spot.

“I find it quite amusing how I seem to always find you in a quarrel with the creek.” the boy sat down right beside him. “I and the creek get along quite well when you’re not around.” Percival scoffed as he moved wet curls out of his face. “I suppose you’re the one that made the flower crown.” The boy beamed with pride.

“Yes. In fact, I spent all of yesterday in the garden trying to find the perfect flowers for it.” Percival picked it back up again examining it. “So I assume you think these are real flowers as compared to the lowly cornflower.” The boy shrugged at this. “You said you didn’t have money for flowers so I thought I’d give you some.” 

He set the crown back down next to his other things. “Well, thank you for the crown.” He smiled at the boy. His attire had changed from the previous encounter. His pants were now a marvelous shade of dark blue instead of the previous light green and he donned a cloak made out of a green tartan. They sat in still and peaceful silence for a while. Percival could feel the sun dry his hair, his skin, and his shirt. It pained him to admit that he enjoyed relaxing with someone compared to relaxing alone.

An hour must've passed before the boy spoke again. “I don’t believe you’ve ever told me your name.” “As if I would be dumb enough to give a random stranger my name.” Percival scoffed. His parents and brothers had told him many times to not give away his name to people. You never know whose intentions are pure and who's trying to manipulate you.

“I did not ask you to give me your name I only asked for you to tell me it so I have something to call you.” The boy said, crossing his arms. “How do I know I can trust you?” “It can be a nickname if you like.” Percival thought about this for a while. It was extremely foolish to tell anyone you barely know your name. If his family knew he was even considering telling it to a boy he met twice in the woods they would most certainly reprimand him. 

“If I tell you mine will you tell me yours?” Percival asked, crossing his arms as well. “Deal.” The boy had a huge grin on his face. He let out a huge sigh and said “I can tell you my name is Percy.” He said, extending his hand. “And I can tell you my name is Ollie.” He reached out and shook Percival’s hand. 

“Well, I must be getting back home before it gets too late,” Percival said while getting up to gather his things. Luckily his cloak was now dry from the sun. He put it back on and grabbed his satchel and the basket full of berries. He waved goodbye and started walking away. He didn’t get very far before he was stopped.

“Wait!” Oliver yelled causing Percival to turn around. “You forgot your flower crown, Percy.” He said holding it. Percival bent down a little, allowing him to put it on his head. It sat askew but Percival didn’t mind. “There. Pretty flowers for a pretty boy.” He looked up at him with a slight blush. No one had ever called him pretty before.

They stood there for a while just staring at each other before Percival said something. “If you wish to meet with me again, my mum usually sends me foraging on Thursdays. I suspect you can find your way home without me.” The boy nodded in response. “I expect to find you here on Thursday, Percy.” “And I’ll be waiting for you, Ollie.” 

They both parted ways. Heading to their respective homes. Percival couldn’t seem to get Oliver’s words out of his mind. ‘Pretty flowers for a pretty boy’. He had to admit that the flowers were a great deal pretty but did Oliver really think he was pretty? But there was no time to dwell on it.

He knew he had to hide the crown before he got home. The last thing he wanted was his family interrogating and lecturing him. He wasn’t very fond of the idea of them finding out about his new friend. He put the crown in his empty satchel and headed the rest of the way home. 

Once he got home, he greeted his family, gave the basket of berries to his mother, and hurried off to his room. He opened the satchel and took out the crown. He couldn’t help but admire the beauty of it. It wasn’t just the flowers but the fact that someone made it just for him. Never had he gotten anything that was just for him. He put it into a box under his bed to make sure no one besides him would ever find it. He had decided it was his and his alone.


	3. The Woods in Deep Winter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Winter is when foraging is most important. Percival is managing to get more done with his friend. Maybe it is time he indulges in a little distraction even if it means breaking the rules.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Sorry, this chapter is quite short but the next one is gonna be better. Thank you, friend Aubrey for editing it despite probably not caring that much about Perciver. As always follow Ezmiho on Sound Cloud to support the gays. Hope you enjoy the story!

Percival and Oliver had been meeting in the woods for months now. Every Thursday like clockwork, Percival would be sent foraging and Oliver would meet him in the clearing. It was a simple routine. They would both work to get the things his mother needed and then spend time together. Just the right amount of time before anyone got suspicious.

But, alas, they were 11 and did not know how to act inconspicuous. Percival’s family noticed he had been spending more time in the woods the past few months but decided not to bother him about it. After all, he seemed to have a more agreeable demeanor after he went foraging. Perhaps they had thought he spent time in the village or took up a hobby in drawing but he wouldn’t give away much.

It was deep into the winter now. With no harvest, his family relied even more on foraging. This of course meant a bigger load Percival would have to carry. He didn’t mind it, the extra work made him feel important. They did occasionally buy food from the village but it was much more expensive this time of year since it came from the eastern cities. 

Percival knew full well his family had a strong aversion to the eastern cities. That's where the rich and powerful lived. He heard his older brothers complain about them taking grain from their harvest every year, costing his family money, only to sell it back to the village in the winter. He never cared enough to stick around long enough to really understand. He assumed his family didn’t want him worrying about it.

But everything they could forage, they did. Nuts, berries, herbs, flowers. It was important to gather everything they could. And they trusted Percival every Thursday to go out and get food and other supplies. He hadn’t let them down so far and he wasn’t going to start now.

He grabbed everything he had used all the times he went before. His mustard yellow cloak was retired for the winter so he used a pale blue winter cloak, that was handed down to him by his older brothers, and a long knitted scarf that his mother made. But other than that everything was the same. 

He headed off into the forest, which was now blanketed with snow, most eager to meet Oliver once again. Though it was covered, Percival still knew exactly where the path to the clearing was. Along the way, he picked up some things he knew he needed. There was a chestnut tree not far from the clearing that he could stop by on the way. 

It was more of a trek than he had planned but he got to the tree. He went up and shook it a little to make sure he wasn’t going to get attacked by snow. Then he started climbing and harvesting chestnuts, as he did with the hazelnuts a few months before until his basket was full. Satisfied, he began to climb down. Only, unlike the other times, he slipped and fell when he was about halfway down. Luckily, the snow softened the fall. Had it been spring he most certainly would’ve broken something.

He quickly got up and tried to brush the snow he had gotten on his cloak. The basket had spilled at least half its contents. He went to pick what he could find from the snow when he heard someone walking towards him. He looked up from the ground to see Oliver running towards him.

“Percy! Whatever happened to you?” He exclaimed while Percival was still attempting to pick up the lost chestnuts. 

“I fell from the tree and dropped the basket.” He stated whilst looking up at Oliver. 

“Well, are you okay?” Oliver asked while bending down to meet Percival at eye level.

“I’m perfectly ordinary. The snow broke my fall. I'm just looking for the chestnuts that fell out of the basket.”

“It would take forever to find all of them in the snow. Why don’t you just pick more from the tree?” 

Percival scoffed putting a handful of chestnuts back into the basket. “The first rule of foraging is to only take what you need. If you take more then you fall out of the forest's good graces.” He explained. Percival went back to picking up the chestnuts off the ground and Oliver waited not so patiently for him to finish. 

Once he was done, he and Oliver went on to gather the other things on the list. They made small chatter whilst they were working but mostly walked in silence. The last thing Percival needed to get was pine cones. 

Reluctant to climb after the tumble from earlier today, he decided to pick what was already on the ground. Oliver was standing right next to him, watching as he picked up every pine cone and examined them with great care. He admired the way he would gently place down the pine cones that didn’t meet his standards. It was like he held every single one with the greatest regard. Once Percival was done he simply fastened the satchel closed and started to walk towards home with Oliver. It only took a little bit until they started chatting again.

“Could you meet me in the clearing tonight?” Oliver asked, looking at Percival. 

“Why?” He replied being more interested in the snow under his feet. 

“The stars are supposed to be very visible tonight and I didn’t want to witness them alone.” 

“We shouldn’t be in the woods at night.” Percival shook his head. 

“Oh…” Oliver responded with a hint of sadness in his voice, “Maybe we can view them by the bay? It should be safer than the woods.” He offered as an alternative. 

“Won’t there be people by the bay?” 

“No one really goes down there this time of year. The only people there would be merfolk and selkies. They don’t bother you if you don’t bother them.” Percival explained. Oliver pondered it for a minute. 

“Okay. I’ll meet you by the bay tonight.” He said with a smile which Percival returned. 

By the time their conversation finished they were back on the main road and heading their separate ways. Both practically giddy with excitement over meeting each other again at night.


	4. So Distant, Yet So Bright

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percival meets Oliver by the bay. After an attempt at finding constellations, Oliver opens up to him about something he never felt he could talk about before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this is like a full 2 weeks late. I promise I'm not gonna leave this I'm just really lazy. If you want chapter 5 stream ezmiho on Soundcloud. That is a threat and a promise.

Percival never did anything like this. Breaking rules was nothing he had ever even considered doing. His brothers did all the time and he knew how mad his parents got at them. They would sneak out to see their girlfriends and always get caught. Percival had to devise a plan not to.

He would leave his house around 7:30 which means he would be at the bay at 8. During the winter everyone falls asleep earlier than usual. He would have to be quiet as to not wake anybody. And he would be home early enough that no one would suspect his absence. It seemed foolproof to him.

Just as planned, everyone was asleep by 7:30. He put on his shirt and his cloak and silently walked down the stairs and through the door until he was outside. He carried a lantern with him so he could see the path and started his journey.

It was colder than he expected but he still trekked on. He could not leave Oliver alone after he said he would be there. By the time he reached the village, his face felt frozen. Luckily the bay was only a short way from here. 

When he reached the rocky outcrops of the bay, he saw that Oliver was already there. The usually light waters now looked like a dark blue velvet as the stars shone into it. For all the 11 years of his life never once has he managed to see the bay at night. It was more peaceful now than during the day. Maybe he would have to come back some other time when it was night.

But alas, he wasn’t here for the bay, he was here for Oliver. Who knows how long Oliver had been waiting. Percival didn’t want him to wait anymore. He walked over to the place where he was sitting and sat next to him. 

“Good evening, Percy,” Oliver said, handing Percival a blanket. “Good evening, Ollie. I hope I didn’t keep you waiting.” He replied, putting the blanket over his shoulders. “I don’t mind waiting,” Oliver commented, trying to make Percival feel at ease. It wasn’t hard to tell how tense he was. After all, this is the first time he was ever breaking rules, it was cold, and he never wanted people to be upset with him.

Percival scoffed at this. “I don’t like people waiting for me. It’s highly rude.” 

“If it helps, I only got here a few minutes before you did.” Percival looked more pleased with this response. He finally looked up at the sky to see all the stars. Never having been stargazing before. He was honestly dumbfounded on what to look for. 

The sky was remarkably clear, just to think it had been snowing in the afternoon. Oliver had brought a star map and a lantern with him. Obviously, he had been more prepared than Percival was.

“What exactly are we supposed to be looking for?” Percival asked after a minute of silence. “Constellations, I guess,” Oliver mumbled whilst looking at the map. He had heard of constellations before. There was a book in the village library that he had checked out long ago that explored them in detail. He was never allowed to look for them. His family always went to sleep before he could get a good view of the stars.

Percival took a peek at the map from over Oliver's shoulder. He couldn’t really tell what it was saying just by looking at it. It was far more complex than the one in the book he checked out. Oliver seemed to understand it though. 

They sat a minute in silence while Oliver studied the map. He occasionally looked up at the sky but then his attention turned right back to the map. The sound of waves crashing and of various gulls laughing and squawking to break apart the silence between the two of them. 

After what felt like an eternity, Oliver tapped on Percival's shoulders. Directing his view to the sky, he focused on where Oliver was pointing. It seemed that he had finally found a constellation. 

“That one’s Orion,” Oliver explained, “He’s quite easy to see because of his belt.” Percival nodded as he stared at the constellation. He could vaguely remember the story behind it that was told in the book. Not enough that he could confidently recount it. Oliver seemed delighted that he finally found a constellation. 

“The bright star right next to it is called Sirius, right?” Percival asked, prompting Oliver to look back at his map. After a few seconds of examination, he nodded. It made him happy that he could recall that, Even if he didn’t recall much about constellations, knowing that made him feel smart. 

They spent the next thirty minutes or so trying to find more constellations to varying degrees of success. Some were easier than others admittedly, but soon they did get a bit bored with the searching. Not wanting their night time adventure to end, they decided to relax and take in the sky while they had the chance. A few minutes of silence was broken by Percival asking a question.

“Where are you from?” Oliver looked confused. “What do you mean?” Percival shrugged and replied, “I know you’re not from the village and you’ve never told me where you live.” 

Oliver thought for a minute. He was from the eastern cities and everyone had told him how much many people from the villages hated the eastern cities. Was it worth it to tell him the truth? Even if it meant that Percival would think differently of him? He could easily lie and say he was from another village far away. But he knew Percival would value the truth.

“I live in the eastern cities,” Oliver said looking down at the rocks. “Oh,” Percival responded, trying not to sound perturbed by this. “What is it like over there? I’ve never been to.” Oliver looked up to meet Percival's gaze. 

“It’s different from here. Everything is so proper and lavish. It gets kind of boring after a while.” Oliver explained.

“It can’t be that bad. At least you needn’t worry about food or clothing or anything.” Percival rebutted. He would do anything to make sure everyone in the village was comfortable so it was horribly rude for Oliver to say that to him.

“I guess I am lucky but I do get quite lonely. They don’t let me do anything so I don’t get to appreciate it a lot.” Oliver explained as his gaze turned to the sky. “Sometimes I just want to be free.” 

“I understand that,” Percival replied. Sometimes he wishes he could leave and start a new life. In a new village without any expectations from his family.

A sudden gust of wind came with a chill. Percival scooted closer to Oliver to see if he could offer a bit of warmth. Oliver obliged and put his arm around him. They sat like this for a while despite the presence of the sickly wind being all but gone. 

“You know, I didn’t have many friends before I met you,” Oliver said after a few moments of silence. “I thought the only reason you were in the woods the day we met was that you were with friends.”

“And they abandoned me that same day. They were never really friends. It is like everyone wants something from me but never sticks around.” Oliver explained. Percival could hear a tinge of sadness in his voice. “I would never do something like that.” Percival offered comfort to Oliver. To his friend. 

“I know you wouldn’t. You’re the only real friend I have.” Oliver could feel tears threatening to fall from his eyes. He never thought about how lonely he was until tonight. It was quite a sad situation he found himself in. Everyone wanted to be close to him for some reason or another. Whether it was for politics or money, it was never about companionship. Percival was different in that regard. The only thing he wanted from Oliver was someone to talk to. 

Suddenly, he felt Percival hug him. Holding him closer than they were before. He couldn’t hold his composure after that action. He cried onto his shoulder but Percival didn’t mind. He wanted Oliver to know he wasn’t going to be like his other friends. Nothing was ever going to come between them.


End file.
